


Unlikeliest of Soulmates

by A Magiluna Stormwriter (ariestess)



Category: Damien (TV), Fancy - Reba McEntire (Song)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/F, First Words You Speak to Your Soulbond Appear On Their Skin, Their Soulmate Doesn't Believe in Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-09
Updated: 2017-06-09
Packaged: 2018-11-11 13:59:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11149869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ariestess/pseuds/A%20Magiluna%20Stormwriter
Summary: She's not ashamed to bear the words uttered by her soulmate, but a vulgar term like ass emblazoned her skin isn't ladylike or appropriate for a young woman trying to be taken seriously in her endeavors to get a business degree.





	Unlikeliest of Soulmates

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TheOnlySPL](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheOnlySPL/gifts).



> ...coming soon

{September 5, 1978}

Ann Rutledge maneuvers her way into the lecture hall, surprised by how full it is already at nearly ten minutes before the first class of Introduction to Economics begins. She studies the rows of seats, looking for the best possible vantage point, both for her personal edification and for her to be in good range for the professor to see her to praise her for her answers. Unfortunately, the seats that she covets are already taken and she is forced to trek up the many stairs toward the back of the hall, as far away from where she wishes to be as possible. Vowing to arrive twenty minutes early in the future, and praying that seats aren't assigned based on today's placement, Ann slips into a seat about one-third of the way down the absolutely last row of seats. She places her messenger bag on the empty seat next to her, retrieving pen and composition book, and begins the countdown to her seven a.m. class starting at last.

Ann studies the other students as the room continues to fill up, time counting down inexorably toward the official commencement of her college education. She can easily pick out the various groups of students by where they sit, how they dress, and how they act. The pangs of bitterness flare again as she stares covetously at the seats she prefers, but accepts that her current location is likely only temporary. With only a couple of moments before class starts, and the professor sorting through his lecture notes at the desk down front, she lets out a sigh of relief that she apparently has the only free seat in the entire hall next to her.

Less than a minute before the lecture starts, the main door of the hall flies open and a woman with riotous red curls comes into the hall like a tornado gone amuck. The woman sheepishly grins at the professor, then makes her way up the steps, at which point Ann realizes she's coming for her buffer seat. The redhead huffs and puffs up to her row, then bulls her way past everyone, pausing to stare at Ann.

"Can I park my ass here?"

Ann feels her entire body go rigid at those words, unconsciously tugging at the sleeve of her turtleneck, making sure that it covers the wide black leather watchband underneath which are the first words her soulmate will ever speak to her.

The same words that this unprofessional and clearly uncouth woman just uttered.

"If you must." Her words drip with disdain as she moves her bag to settle it at her feet, letting the woman flop into the now-vacant seat.

"Huh," the woman says, staring at her for a moment before holding out her hand. "I'm Fancy Rae Baker, but you can just call me Fancy. Nice to meet ya."

Ann's eyes flick to the woman's hand, then return to the professor now passing out the syllabus as he makes his introductory remarks.

*****

Fortunately, the seats are first come, first served, so Ann makes sure to arrive just after six-thirty Thursday morning and, as soon as the janitor unlocks the room, she is in and claiming the center front row seat that she wants. She intends to spend the next half hour going over her notes, both from the previous lecture and the readings assigned. She plans to make the most of her scholarship and walk away with top honors, just as she did in high school.

"Hey there!" comes an unfortunately familiar voice about twenty minutes before class begins. The seat to her left is open yet somehow. Of course it is. Or it was until the raucous Fancy Rae Baker settles into it. "Annie, right? We have a lot of the same classes so far, don't we?"

Eyes narrowing, Ann turns to sneer at her. "My name is Ann. I despise that nickname."

Fancy frowns slightly at that, but the expression is quickly replaced by a bright smile as she sees Ann's watch peeking out from under her sleeve. "Hey, I bought that same watch for the guy that helped me get into college in the first place." Without warning, she reaches over to push up the material to get a better look at the watch. "Okay, so yours is much nicer than the one I bought. Is it inscribed at all?" She tries to turn over the watch a bit, but Ann has it too tightly cinched on her wrist.

"It's my father's and even if it was inscribed, that doesn't mean you get to paw me to read it." Ann glares at her and pulls her arm back to fix both watch and sleeve again before returning to her notes. There is no way in heaven or hell that she's going to let this woman see the words hidden by the watchband. "As you can see, I'm taking advantage of my early arrival to get a little extra studying in."

Fancy blinks then. "Sorry," she mutters sarcastically and stretches before reaching up to tug her hair into an unkempt bun. As she bends over to pull out her own notebook and pen, Ann catches sight of strange markings curving up the edge of her hairline just behind her right ear. Fancy grins as she catches Ann trying to stare unobtrusively at the marks. "Crazy, isn't it? I mean, we're raised to believe these words on our bodies are supposed to be some big mystical, magical thing that will tell us who our soulmate is, but it's just so stupid!"

That brings Ann up short. This woman has said the words that she has been mortified to let anyone see for the majority of her life. She's not ashamed to bear the words uttered by her soulmate, but a vulgar term like ass emblazoned her skin isn't ladylike or appropriate for a young woman trying to be taken seriously in her endeavors to get a business degree. And now this woman who has uttered those six words apparently doesn't believe in soulmates. And that doesn't even bring into play the fact that her soulmate is another woman. How is she supposed to deal with all of this?

"You don't believe in soulmates?" she finally asks. "But you have the first words your soulmate will say right there behind your ear. How can you not believe in that?"

Fancy snorts. "Hogswallop! _Anybody_ could say these words to me. I mean, did you actually read what they say?"

Ann doesn't have to look again to know what they say. She uttered them just two days ago in response to this woman saying the exact words indelibly marking her own skin. Until this moment, seeing Fancy's soulmate phrasing, she hoped that the redhead's words were just a fluke. But she can't any longer.

"I mean," Fancy says, pulling Ann back into the conversation, "these words are just so generic. How am I supposed to put faith in the idea that there is someone out there meant for me, predetermined as my soulmate, with three stupid words like 'If you must'?"

Ann wants to scream _Because it just is_ , but she also knows that she requires proof of things, too. Taking things on faith alone isn't always wise. But here she is sitting next to another woman and they have shared first words that link them as soulmates, yet this woman doesn't believe in soulmates.

"I suppose we can't all have memorable first words from our soulmates," she finally says lamely.

*****

By the end of September, Ann and Fancy come to a kind of truce in their bickering back and forth. Ann realizes that Fancy is actually far more dedicated to her studies than initially expected, and offers some good commentary in the classes they share. By the end of the second week, they decide to be study partners, and begin spending most of their time together. Well, when Ann isn't taking care of her six-month-old daughter. When Fancy learns of Alissa's existence, she practically falls over herself to meet the little girl. Ann's mother knows of the soulmate situation that her daughter is facing, and repeatedly tries to convince Ann to tell Fancy what's going on. Ann steadfastly refuses, explaining Fancy's lack of belief as her reason.

By the Thanksgiving holiday, Fancy is invited to spend the weekend with Ann and her parents. Ann is terrified of this, but also looks forward to the extended uninterrupted time at home with her daughter. Fancy manages to charm both of her parents, especially her father.

By Friday night of that weekend, Fancy has seen the bandages on Ann's left wrist whenever she doesn't wear her watch, but doesn't ask immediately. Ann's not sure what the redhead thinks of this, but she also doesn't want to bring it up.

Ann takes off her watch Friday night for her shower and forgets the bandage afterward, exhausted from the day of shopping with Fancy, her mother, and a fussy Alissa. She just wants to crawl into bed and sleep for the rest of the weekend, but knows that's not possible. As she slips into her twin bed, smiling wearily at Fancy, she stretches just enough for her left wrist to be fully visible. Fancy splutters and grabs her wrist, the color draining from her face as a finger traces the six words delicately.

"What in tarnation?" Ann tries to pull her arm back, blushing hotly when Fancy doesn't let go. "Annie, what is this? Why have I never seen this before? I thought we were friends…"

"And I thought we were soulmates, but since you think that's all-- What did you call it? Hogswallop? I didn't think it was worth bringing it up."

The look of horror in Fancy's eyes at her words makes Ann almost regret saying them. "I-- Annie, I never expected you to keep this from me though. It doesn't matter if I believe it or not. You're my friend, and apparently you're my soulmate, too."

Ann pulls her wrist back and hides her arm under the covers. "It doesn't matter, Fancy. We're still friends. The rest of it?" She shrugs. "Maybe it is all stupid superstition. Just forget about it and we'll continue as friends and study buddies, okay?" She turns over then, back to Fancy, and tries to hide her tears over this whole situation.

Fancy stares at her back for several minutes before getting up to turn off the light and slip into Ann's bed, wrapping herself around her friend. Ann stiffens slightly at the contact, but forces herself to relax into the comforting warmth.

"I'm sorry, Annie," she whispers and kisses Ann's shoulder. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I just-- With the way I grew up and my soulmate phrase being so generic, I didn't want to get my own hopes up, you know? But I like you, and…" She pauses to kiss Ann's shoulder again when Ann's hand rests over the one against her stomach. "And maybe I'm scared that you're gonna decide that you don't even want me as a friend."

Ann turns around to face her at her words, just making out the redhead's features in the moonlight coming in through the window. "If I really didn't want you to be in my life at all, you wouldn't be here and you wouldn't have met Alissa. Yes, you annoy me, Fancy Rae Baker, including calling me Annie when I hate it, but you also make me laugh." When Fancy presses a gentle kiss to the tip of her nose, Ann grins. "And then you do things like that and my heart literally clenches in my chest because I know you're my soulmate, and I could see us having a life together."

"I'm not easy to live with," Fancy says softly, then grins. "But neither are you clearly. It won't be easy, and we'll probably butt heads a lot, but I'm willing to give it a shot if you are."


End file.
